updated 04:35 pm EDT, Fri May 31, 2013

Refresh could be imminent

The base, quad-core 3.2GHz Mac Pro is low on stock or unavailable at a number of vendors, MacTrast notes. The system is listed as backordered or out of stock by resellers like Adorama, CDW, B&H Photo, MacMall, PowerMax, and J&R Electronics. Amazon has less than 10 units in stock; Frys, Best Buy, and MicroCenter also have low quantities.

The situation may suggest that Apple is about to refresh the Mac Pro. WWDC begins on June 10th, and CEO Tim Cook promised new hardware sometime in 2013. The computer hasn't received a major update since 2010, even as other Macs have undergone several iterations.

hopefully there are some good surprises when it is updated- maybe a cheaper "Pro-Sumer" Core i7 model? Really hope they have a case that can fit in a rack mount (horizontally) - maybe replaceable handles. Other than that I expect Thunderbolt, new video card options, USB3 of course, newest Intel Xeons. Probably only 1 optical bay, maybe none.

It's nice to see that some people are still optimistic about Apple. Personally, I think they will try to replace the MacPro with a "special" version of the MacMini and then try to convince people that they never really needed a Professional grade Mac in the first place...

iMacs are simply not usable in high intensity multimedia production environments.

Yea, I expect the "Mac minis and iMacs can do it all" fanboys to chime in...LOL

Where'd you ever encounter one?

Fact is, iMacs and Mac minis these days *are* powerful enough for the VAST majority of tasks that used to require a tower. A current 27" iMac will easily outrun most Mac Pro towers at work in studios, and even things like MADI cards are no problem (albeit pricey) thanks to external Thunderbolt expansion chassis. The days where you needed a "Pro" tower to run Photoshop are long over.

Of course there are a few cases that still require towers, and some of those happen to be in media production. If Apple is seriously considering abandoning that market segment (which I very much doubt), they certainly have no reason to tease a "replacement".

I'm hoping for 19" rack-mountable hardware, myself (though I'm not personally in the market for one).

At home, I can deal with Mac Mini (16GB RAM) to do most of the freelance works. At work (on site), I need Mac Pro because it has 64GB RAM plus robust video card to handle complex 3D modeling that the project requires. Mac Mini can't handle it and it will freeze or just dreadfully slow.

How about something utilitarian that can be opened so we can get to the hard drive and memory, so we can maybe add an extra drive, and maybe add a card? Oh yeah, let Ives put a round corner here and there if he wants.

The Mac Pro was the last remaining product from a long gone Apple that catered to the High End Pro creative market.

Apple no longer cares for this sector, believing more profit can be made on the consumer/prosumer sector. This is true, for there are quite a bit more media consumers than content creators, but it still makes old loyal core business clients feel abandoned.

Ah, just let the poor thing die, and move over to professional oriented platforms.